Schaeffler has announced plans to close two of its UK manufacturing plants — in Plymouth (Barden Corporation Ltd) and Llanelli — and transfer production to existing plants in the USA, China, South Korea and Germany.

The Plymouth site, which employs 350 people, currently produces mainly spindle bearings and machine parts for Schaeffler’s industrial division, as well as special bearings for the aerospace and defence industries.

The Llanelli site, which employs 220 people, currently makes mechanical tappets and special-purpose bearings for automotive OEMs and selected industrial customers.

Juergen Ziegler, regional CEO Europe, said: “A global business needs to regularly review market conditions and strive to optimise its footprint across different regions.

“The proposed measures we have taken for the UK reflect this business reality. However, we remain committed to keeping certain activities in the UK — a country that will continue to be important to us.”

Schaeffler (www.schaeffler.com) currently has three plants in the UK (in Plymouth, Llanelli and Sheffield) and two logistics centres (in Hereford and Sutton Coldfield).

These five locations have a total workforce of just over 1,000 people. Sheffield — the largest of Schaeffler’s UK sites in terms of revenues and employee numbers — will be retained in its current form.

It assembles clutches for passenger cars and tractors. The logistics centres in Sutton Coldfield (industrial products) and Hereford (automotive after-market) are just 77 miles apart; the proposal is to combine their operations at Hereford, enabling various synergies and efficiencies.

Most of the office workers at Sutton Coldfield location will move to a leased office in the area.

Greig Littlefair, managing director of Schaeffler UK, said: “We are committed to having transparent and fair discussions with the employees affected by these proposals.

“We will also ensure that our customers continue to be served — and that these proposed changes create minimal disruption for them.”

Mr Ziegler added: “The changes to our UK footprint are designed to make us more efficient by relocating parts of our production closer to where our products are used.

“Brexit is not the single decisive factor behind our decision-making for the UK market, but the need to plan for various complex scenarios has brought forward the timing.”

It is anticipated that these plans will take up to two years to implement.

The Unite trade union has vowed to oppose the closures.